he two-month-old males are now starting to explore the Panthera enclosure. They don’t have names yet.
The snow leopards were born on 9 May in a specially equipped whelping box, Zurich Zoo announced on Thursday. At birth, they were still blind and deaf – but their coats were already marked with the typical dark rosettes and spots.
In the beginning, this was to protect them from predators so that they would not be spotted at a distance. Later, this colouring provides optimal camouflage when hunting in the high mountains of Central Asia.
In the meantime, the cubs are already two months old and independently exploring their habitat. For the time being, they are exploring the mountains. Over the next few weeks, they will be introduced to the three other areas of the habitat: deciduous forest and dry forest.
Sixteen metre leaps
The snow leopard, which can jump up to 16 metres, is an endangered species. According to Zurich Zoo, there are only around 3,000 sexually mature animals left in the wild today.
They are hunted for their particularly long and thick fur – the thickest of all cat species – as well as for various body parts that are used in traditional medicine.
To ensure that the snow leopard does not become extinct, offspring are needed as part of the European Conservation Breeding Programme. The internationally coordinated breeding programme maintains a stable reserve population.
Translated from German by DeepL/mga
We select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools to translate them into English. A journalist then reviews the translation for clarity and accuracy before publication.
Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles. The news stories we select have been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team from news agencies such as Bloomberg or Keystone.
If you have any questions about how we work, write to us at english@swissinfo.ch
Popular Stories
More
Climate adaptation
Why Switzerland is among the ten fastest-warming countries in the world
In Switzerland more people are being referred to electrical therapies or psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. Are there similar approaches where you live?
Prince William will attend final of Women’s Euro 2025 in Basel
This content was published on
The heir to the British throne will be watching the final of the European Women's Football Championship live in the stadium on Sunday.
Reduced fine for Credit Suisse in currency cartel case
This content was published on
The Court of Justice of the European Union has reduced the fine imposed on Credit Suisse from €83.2 million to €28.9 million, while confirming its involvement in a spot foreign exchange cartel.
This content was published on
A study conducted at the University of Zurich has shown that when animals make decisions for their group, their hearts beat faster.
Swiss firm ABB to electrify one of the largest oil and gas terminals
This content was published on
ABB has won a major contract in Azerbaijan for the electrification and grid stability of one of the world's largest oil and gas terminals, Sangachal.
Swiss railways’ ‘invisible disabilities’ lanyards prove popular
This content was published on
According to the Swiss Federal Railways, there is great interest in its lanyards for travellers with invisible disabilities.
This content was published on
A prisoner who escaped on Thursday in Baden, canton Aargau, is still on the run. The 23-year-old Albanian, who was in custody for burglary, was wearing handcuffs when he escaped.
Swiss city places information boards next to Nazi memorial
This content was published on
The city of Chur in eastern Switzerland has erected four information boards next to the Nazi memorial in the Daleu cemetery.
Swiss heat: parallels drawn with 2003 ‘summer of century’
This content was published on
Looking at the current weather situation in Switzerland, the private weather service MeteoNews has drawn parallels with the hot summer of 2003.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.